Automatic belt-guide.



PATENTED JUNE 2, 1908.

H. F. SNYDER. AUTOMATIC BELT GUIDE.

LI T OH H E W LQMn Y 015595 Inve 72 750;

Witnesses UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HOWARD F. SNYDER, OF NEWTON, IOWA, ASSIGNOR TO FRED L. MAYTAG, OFNEWTON, IOWA.

AUTOMATIC BELT-GUIDE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 2, 1908.

To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, HOWARD F. SNYDER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Newton, in the county of Jasper and State of Iowa, haveinvented anew and'useful Belt- Quide, of which the following is aspecification.

The objects of my invention are to provide a belt guide which willautomatically maintain the belt in its operative position against sidewinds and will entirely obviate any friction on the edges of the belt inaccomplishing this result. I

My invention consists in certain details in the construction,arrangement and combination of the various parts of the device, wherebythe objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully setforth, pointed out in my claims and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure 1 is a rear elevation of my belt guide. Fig.2 is a vertical, sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a side elevationof the belt guide in position on a threshing machine, showing the belton the belt guide in an operative position. 'Fig. 4 is a top view of thebelt guide with the rollers removed, and shown in cross section theuprights for supporting the ends of the main roller. Fig. 5 is a planview of the belt guide showing the belt at one side of the large roller.Fig. 6 is a plani view of the belt guide with the belt in the middle ofthe large roller and in the normal operative position, and Fig. 7 is aplan view of the belt guide and shows the elt at the opposite side ofthe large roller from that shown in Fig. 5.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the referencenumeral 10 to indicate the base of my belt guide, said base having thelugs 11 and 12 at itsforward end with a circular opening extendingthrough their central portions. Extending transversely of the forwardend of this base 10 and entering the openings in the lugs 11 and 12 is ashaft 13. Mounted on theshaft 13 and between the lugs 12is the support14, said sup-' portbeing held in position relative to the shaft 13 bymeans ofakey 15. The shaft 13 and the su(pport 14 which is mountedthereon is designe to be maintained in fposition relative to the base 10by means o a number of set screws 16 which enter the lugs 11 and 12 andare desi ned to be forced into engagement with the shaft 13. These setscrews are provided so that the support 14 may be placed at any desiredangle relative to the base 10 by adjusting the set screws 16. Extendingupwardly and outwardly from the sides of the support 14 are the arms 17and 18, the arms 17 having the screw threaded bolt 19 extending throughit and designed to project forwardly from it a slight distance. The arm18 also has a screw threaded bolt 20 extending through it and designedto project aslightdistance forwardly from it, for limiting the swingingmovement. of the roller frame. The bolt 19 has a locking nut 21 and thebolt 20 has a locking nut 22, said nuts 21 and 22 being designed to holdthe bolts in position relative to the arms 17' and 18.

Extending from the top to the bottom of the forward portion of thesupport 14 is a circular opening designed to admit the shank 23 havingthe cross head 24 at its upper end which is designed to rest u on theupper portion of the support 14, an to revent the downward movement ofthe shan 23. Extending upwardly from and substantially at right anglesto the ends of the cross head 24 cross head 24 and the uprights 25 and26 compose what is termed for convenience the roller support. Rotatablymounted in the uprights 25 and between them is the guide roller 27 L Theupright 25 has the roller bearing member 28 at its upper end, saidmember having mounted on it a safety roller 29. The upright 26 also hasa roller bearing member30 with the roller 31 mounted upon it. on theroller bearing members 28 and 30 by the pins 32. In the construction ofthe defront of the screw threaded bolts 19 and 20 -screw t clearly inFig. 4 of the drawings.

Attached to the rear ed e of the cross head 24 is the curved bar 33 Wich has. the notch 34 initscentral rear portion. Attached to the arm 17by means of the screw threaded bolt 19 and the nut 21 is the leaf spring35 having the'projection 36near its 'ee end.

notch 34 and to be maintained therein by the leaf spring 35 and it isdesi ned to maintain theguide roller 27 a ainst tilting movement;

of the drawings Where the belt is running over the center of the pulleyand yet will not are the uprights 25 and 26. The shanks 23,

that is, in the norma position shown in-Fig. 6-

These rollers 29 and 31 are maintained vice, the. cross head 24 isimmediately in so that this cross headwhen standing in its, normalosition will be equi-distant from the 'eaded bolts 19 and 20 as shownThis projection 36 isdesigned to enter the 20 roller as shown in Fig. 5.This will cause the easily to either of the angles'shown in Fi 5 or Fig.7 when the belt approaches eit er edge of the roller. It will be easilyseen that the base 10 can be easily attached to the ordinary threshingmachine and the belt guide will be in readlness for use.

In practical operation and assumin that the parts of the device areassemb ed as above described, and that the belt guide is attached to theordinary threshing machine and the belt is on the belt guide as shown inFig. 3 of the drawings and that the belt is in.

the central portion of the roller as shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings.Then assuming that the belt is in operation and the portion which istraveling over the belt guide is moved in the direction indicated by thearrow in Fig. 3 and a side wind or other force causes the belt to beshifted to the'right side of the roller to be tilted so that the ri htside of the roller will be drawn downwardly as well as forwardly and theleft side will at the same time be forced upwardly and rearwardly. Thereverse of this statement is also true when the belt shifts to the oposite side of the roller and the cross hea I 24 will be thrown-intoengagement with the screw threaded bolt 19, and as soon as the roller isin this position, the belt will be automatically forced to the center ofthe guide roller 27 and the roller will be moved back to its normalposition when the belt is moving, as shown -m Fig. 6. If the belt by anycause is. shifted to the left side of the guide roller 27 as shown inFig. 7 of the drawings, the roller will be tilted in the osition showntherein and will cause the bel t to be shifted to the center of the uideroller 27. The ease with which the gui e roller is tilted from oneosition to another is due to the fact that t e shaft which sulpports theroller is placed at an acute angle re ative to the base which supportsit, and the tendency of the belt in operation is to force the end of theroller. over which it is 7 running downwardly and rearwardly until thecross head 24 engages one of the screw threaded bolts 19 or 20, and assoon as the guide roller is in either of its tilted positions, thetendency of the belt is to move immediately to the center of the guideroller. Thus the belt will be constantly kept a proximately in thecenter of the guide rol er and this will be done without any wear uponthe edges of the belt, or without any engagement of any portions of thedevice as it is in operation inasmuch as the safety rollers 29 and 31are simply to prevent the belt from en-' tirely slippmg off of the guideroller in case of accident or in case the belt should become very loosein operation. The angle of the support 14 relative to the base 10 can bechanged by adjusting the set screws 16 at the pleasure of the operator.In order that the belt operates the belt guide successfully, the.

support in which the guide roller is mounted should be inclined relativeto the plate through which the belt in engagement with .movement, andsafety rollers mounted'on the upper ortions of said roller support andat the en s of the guide roller, for the purposes stated.

2. In an automatic belt guide, ,a base, a supportcapable of beingadjusted at any ang e relative to said base, a roller support pivotallymounted in said support, a roller mounted in the roller support, meansattached to the support, and springing means attachedto the support fornormally holding the roller support mid-way between'its extreme limitsof movement.

3. In an automatic belt guide, a base, a support adjustably mounted inan inclined position relative to said base, a roller support pivotallymounted in said support, a roller mounted in the roller support,adjustable means attached to the support, and springing means attachedto the support for normally holding the roller support mid-way betweenits extreme limits of movement.

4. In an automaticbelt guide, a base, a

support adjustably mounted in an inclined posltion relative to saidbase, a roller support pivotally mounted in said support, a rollermounted in the roller support, means attached to the sup ort forlimiting the piv-' otal movement of t e roller support, springing meansattached to the support for normally holding the roller support mid-waybetween its extreme limits of movement, and a safety roller mountedateach end of the guide roller.

5. In an automatic belt guide, a base, a support adjustably mounted inan inclined position relative to said base, a roller support' pivotallymounted in said support, a roller mounted in the roller support,adjustable means attached to the support for limiting the pivotalmovement of the roller'support,

springing means attached to the support for normally holding the rollersupport mid-way between its extreme limits of movement, and

a safety roller mounted at each end of the guide roller. 7

6. In an automatic belt guide, a guide roller over which a belt isdesigned to travel, a

sup ort for the guide reller, standing at an forced toward the centralportion of guide ang eto the vert1cal, so that in one osition roller,and adjustable means for limiting the of, said sup ort, the guide rollerWil run in swinging movement of the 'de roller. a horizonta plane and asit is swun from HOWARD SNYDER.

this 'position 1n either direction, the re er will Witnesses:

sltand at an angle to the horizontal, so that JonN T. HUME, the beltpassing over it Will be constantly W. LANE.

